Mr. and Mrs. Claus

CANS FOR COMMENTS! I will donate one can for each and every comment left anywhere on this blog through Sunday 12/21! Please be so kind as to leave a comment. :-)

My very favorite Christmas keepsake is my little Santa & Mrs. Claus salt & pepper shakers. They kiss. :-P



These once belonged to my Grandma Mock. I don't know if it is my fondness for my grandmother or my fondness for salt & pepper shakers that makes me cherish these little momentos so much. I'm guessing it's the perfect combination of the two. ;-) My Grandma Mock was a Christmas fanatic and she always made the holidays so special for all of us.

So when I saw Maddox excitedly jerk these precious little statues from their box and exclaim "LOOK!"...I about freaked! "AAAAA! Okay. Don't move. Now...very carefully hand them to mommy...." And a big sigh of relief when they were in my hands and safely perched out of reach of little hands. :-)

I decided then and there to get a few photographs just in case tragedy strikes...photographs are less fragile, right? One more...how about a little dramatic mood lighting....



What is your favorite holiday keepsake or tradition?

The Rimel Elves

CANS FOR COMMENTS! I will donate one can for each and every comment left anywhere on this blog through Sunday 12/21! Please be so kind as to leave a comment. :-)

We elf ourselves every year...Maddox finds it endlessly entertaining. Watch us get our groove on... :-)

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

:-P

Cans for Comments...

Early this past week I came across a Cans for Comments post on another photographer's blog...the amazing Anne Ruthmann. I believe the idea started with Chris + Lynn. I absolutely love the idea! There are so many great things about it.

First of all, I absolutely love getting comments on the blog. Feedback is great and it's nice to know somebody is out there and my words and pictures aren't disappearing into a vacuum. :-P But having those comments go towards a greater good...in this case, a donation of food to those who are in need...that's an amazing thing to be a part of. The current economic situation is impacting food pantries across the country, including local food pantries her in the KC area.

I will be making my donation to the Community Services League here in Independence. I plan on having Maddox help me purchase and deliver the food. With all of the commercialism that comes along with Christmas...it will be a great opportunity for him to get out of his sheltered little bubble and experience something more in keeping with the real spirit of the holidays. :-)



So, here's how it works...you leave comments, I donate cans! Easy! Simple! :-)

I WILL DONATE 1 CAN (OR FOOD ITEM) FOR EVERY COMMENT LEFT ON THIS BLOG THROUGH SUNDAY 12/21/08!

So PLEASE leave a comment! You can comment on this post, maybe check out the articles (links above) and leave your thoughts on this situation. Or scroll down and enjoy some pictures, and leave a comment about your favorites. I will try to find some fun things to post this week to prompt your participation and feedback, giving you a reason to come back and leave more comments! Then next Monday, I will tally and post the results.

And even better, please forward this blog post on to your friends and family encouraging them to leave a comment as well.

Thanks!

The Plaza Revisited

I headed back out to the plaza, this time with my friend Christie. It was a lot more fun than wandering around all by my lonesome! We had a great time. Once again, I have posted some of my favorites from the shoot for your viewing enjoyment...





I had fun sneaking pics of Christie while she worked. :-P

















Make sure you check out Christie's photos from our little plaza photo safari. She got some amazing and very creative shots. This is Christie taking the very first picture you see on her blog post of plaza lights.



I couldn't decide. Which is better? Color...



or black & white...?

















So festive! Definitely gets me in the mood for the holidays. :-)
What gets you in the mood for the holidays? Leave a comment and let us know. ;-)

Finally...Evey Lets Go!

Evey has finally decided that she can indeed walk. We have known this for quite some time! She has been very difficult to convince. You could lure her into taking quite a few steps...but she was always reaching. Always trying to grab onto someone or something. It certainly hasn't hampered her mobility too much. Even without full out walking, Evey was quite swift and stealthy.

But yesterday, for some reason, she finally let go. And now, 24 hours later, it's like she has been walking all along! The girl is walking all over the place like it's no big deal. Even though it further aids in her orneriness, I'm still thrilled. It's so wonderful to see her walking like a big girl. :-)

One of her favorite places to walk to...the Christmas tree. Of course.





One of her very favorite ornaments...she points and/or grabs it and says, "baaaallll"...



Struttin' her stuff...
(Sidenote: This was a spontaneous shoot. I am aware her outfit doesn't match. She dirtied her pink leggings and I stuck some grey ones on her since we were home for the day. And the fabulous footwear you see here are her adorable sassy slippers. Geez...her bow is clipped on kind of goofy and her hair is sticking up. Now I'm over-analyzing. Who cares, right!? Just look at her go! :-)





Maddox happened by and I convinced him to let me take a picture or two of him. Okay, I bribed him with a Backyardigans episode. Whatever. ;-)



I mainly got goofball faces...







We wrote his letter to Santa tonight. I always have to keep a copy because they crack me up. He dictates, I write.

Dear Santa,

Sometimes I share with Evey and Daddy and Mommy. I eat my important vitamins. I didn't break any decorations. I am a good boy and need Spike the Dinosaur and a fighting robot. Next Christmas I want to have the LEGO Star Wars game. Thank you Santa!

Maddox

P.S. My sister would like a pony and a doll.

Happy Birthday Dylan!

Dylan turned 28 on Friday! Last night we got together for a little celebration. :-)





That's a lot of fire...





Happy Birthday Dylan!

Plaza Shots

I had to run an errand yesterday, a little shopping on the plaza. So I figured I'd take my camera along to grab a few shots while I was there. I never get tired of shooting on the plaza...I just love the architecture and the fountains. And this time of year...the lights! :-)







I took this for my friend Becca... :-)





Fun!















I'm hoping to return sometime soon with my friend Christie to do some more plaza shooting...preferably in the snow.